Escaping the Emotional Roller Coaster: ACT for the emotionally sensitive

I was so glad to have found Dr. Patricia Zurita Ona’s Escaping the Emotional Roller Coaster book. It made me realize that when I have bouts of being oversensitive, I have choices that I can make in how I react to my intense feelings. Dr. Zurita Ona does a good job in breaking down what is actually going on in my brain, as a “super feeler,” that cause my big emotional reactions. She explains that while “super feelers” are wired a little differently, there’s no reason for us to get overly consumed in our emotions and lose control over our behavior. At its essence, the book is a super valuable handbook that taught me how to recognize my challenging emotions, accept them, and then how to get back in charge of my life.I felt that the richest part of the book was identifying and staying focused on my most essential values and then learning how to access them, while I am in the initial throws of an intense feeling episode. Recently, I successfully stopped myself from snapping back at my friend when she insinuated that I had been very careless. I gently reminded myself about my wish to be kind to others and found that our conversation went so much better than I’d ever hoped it would. I will refer frequently to this book because it has so many thoughtful strategies and exercises to help me choose how I want to be in my life, even when it may seem to be elusive.And finally, I have to say that Dr. Zurita Ona has an engaging writing style that is playful, honest and direct. She chooses words and phrases like “cranky town” and “isolation city,” that lightens the intensity of the subject matter, while illuminating her assertions. I finished the book with the realization that there is a lot of hope for people who lose emotional control in the intensity of the moment.If you want a book that offers a guiding light on how to choose to live your life in alignment with your most important values, rather than potentially destructive emotions, read…better yet, keep Escaping the Emotional Roller Coaster by your bedside!

There are many self-help books to choose from but few that are as comprehensive, concise and user-friendly as this one is. If you are struggling with emotions that feel overwhelming and sometimes cause you to act hastily in your relationships, at work or anywhere in your life, this book could be just what you need. I loved the step by step organization and the continual recaps that “tie it all together” so that reading the book actually sticks and can be used immediately with yourself or if you are a therapist, with your client. I know I will be using this book both personally and professionally as a super-feeler myself and one who works with clients who want to gain control of their lives in the face of difficult thoughts and feelings that are at times hard to not be controlled by. I found this book incredibly useful, combining wisdom, compassion and practicality in a way that helps the reader deeply understand their “emotional machinery” better, learn new tools for managing intense feelings and make choices that align with values and who one wants to be in their life. And although this isn’t a workbook, per se, it is packed with exercises and worksheets for practicing the skills and at the end there is a even a list of skills with pages to return to and a simple 4 step chart for living a conscious, values directed life. This book is also a wonderful treatment approach for anyone for whom being a “super-feeler” is at the level of borderline personality disorder as it is a great alternative or addition to DBT and puts ACT on the map of excellent, evidence based treatment modalities for this difficult disorder. Kudos to Dr. Zurita Ona for such an excellent piece of work!

Perfect example of the way self-help books should be. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟These are strong words but this is a strong book. One of the frequent gripes I hear from folks is that self-help books aren't all that helpful. This book - Escaping the Emotional Roller Coaster - ACT for the Emotionally Sensitive by Dr Patricia Zurita Ona (Dr Z) - is the new model I hope every author follows. Not only is her book grounded in science (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) but she's funny, smart, and has a wonderfully reassuring voice. She does what I wish every author would do: she includes plenty of quotes, examples, and scenarios so that you can understand what you're supposed to *do* with all of the information in this book. I wouldn't limit this one to just super-feelers: if you experience anxiety, OCD, or have feelings at all, you will learn something from this book. 😉he section on Me and My Inner Voice has my name written all over it and it's my fav.If you've been looking for the perfect self-help book that isn't difficult to read and you can put it to use right away, *this* is the one to buy.

Dr. Patricia Zurita Ona produced a great guide for navigating through the complexities of the emotional landscape for “super-feelers”. Combining insights from ACT, neuroscience and psychology, she lays out effective strategies for emotion regulation for the super feelers. While we don’t have control over what happens around us, we can choose how to respond to those events. This book is packed with practical approaches to mastering our “emotional machinery”; laid out in a simple and easy to grasp format.Even though the book’s explicitly stated goal is to help the “emotionally sensitive” manage their emotional roller coaster, everyone can benefit from reading the book. All of us have our own emotional blindspots and this book serves as an extremely useful guide to self mastery! A must read for everyone who strives to get better!!

Dr. Zurita Ona is an excellent clinician and professor so it was no surprise to me that her book was spot on. Dr. Z tells you step by step how to be more in touch with your emotions and live a life more in line with your values. She offers useful metaphors and a ton of experiential exercises to support your growth. I appreciate her sense of humor throughout the book and personal examples. The book is very easy to understand. I would reccomend this book for anyone who wants to learn how to manage their emotions more effectively.

Very good book, but you need to read it few times to understand the method of Act. Very informative about human emotions.

What a great book! It was really needed for sensitive people. Clients are going to love the balance between scientific info and being easy to read with nice short chapters and sections. It’s light and easily consumable, and it really makes a lot of sense.

I love this book and it helped me to a great extent to manage and handle my emotions...I would recommend this for anyone who seeks out for understand our overwhelming emotions

This book is easy to read and very helpful…It makes Acceptance and Commitment Therapy very accessible by learning core skills that applies to feelings, body states, and relationships issues. Dr Z shares her deep knowledge and experience . She is a great therapist caring for the super feelers and sharing with us her secrets !